AGRM ISSUES 22ND ANNUAL SNAPSHOT
SURVEY OF THE HOMELESS

Colorado Springs, Colo. (Nov. 23, 2011) —
Nearly one in five people experiencing homelessness (21%) have been the victims
of physical violence within the past twelve months. According to the 22nd
annual Snapshot Survey from the
Association of Gospel Rescue Missions (AGRM), those reporting such recent
assaults have risen 6 percent from the same time last year.

“It’s
not uncommon for the stress of personal economic woes to trigger anger and
aggressive behavior,” said Association of Gospel Rescue Missions President John
Ashmen. “It’s quite possible that the uptick in physical violence that mission
guests are reporting is due to a friend or family member’s feeling of
desperation and helplessness accompanying their unemployment and
underemployment.”

The survey, completed in October by almost 19,000
individuals at 114 gospel rescue missions in North America, provides a valuable
snapshot of those seeking assistance from rescue missions. According to the
2011 Snapshot Survey data, 35 percent
of people experiencing homelessness on a given night are homeless for the first
time. Furthermore, 17 percent identify themselves as not currently homeless,
suggesting a level of need congruent with those on the brink of homelessness.

“Unfortunately,
nothing in the report is a huge surprise,” Ashmen added. “The plight of the
desperate and destitute is continuing—and our member missions are on the front
lines, caring for the casualties of poverty and poor choices. Our member
missions are pretty much filled to capacity, sleeping people on mats in common
space when they run out of beds in their dorms. And rarely are there empty
chairs at their tables whenever meals are served. In fact, many missions are
now also sending boxes of food into the surrounding neighborhoods on a regular
basis.”

Ashmen
continues, “Some public figures like to give the impression that government
programs are curbing homelessness and hunger. We certainly aren’t seeing
it.”

“This year just over 2,000 people stayed in our
shelter who have never been homeless before,” said Bill Roscoe, Boise Rescue
Mission executive director. “We’ve seen quite a significant increase in numbers
with women and children. In two years the average daily population in our
women’s and children shelter more than doubled.”

While single individuals represent the largest
served population (86% of total surveyed), women with children are still the
most frequently served family unit (52% of total families). Couples without
children grew by 8 percent from the previous year, to 20 percent of total families.
Lastly, 12 percent of families are men with children, an increase of 3 percent
from the previous year.

“Unemployment and poverty is so severe in West
Virginia,” said Rex Whiteman CEO of Charleston’s Union Mission Ministries. “We
are feeding close to 50,000 individuals (15,000 families) a month who are at
risk of becoming homeless. Many of these people simply have a roof over their
heads, are merely existing and with difficulty trying to make it through life.”

The characteristics of sheltered homeless
individuals are much different than those of sheltered families. Individuals
are more likely to be White (50%) men (74%) over the age of 30 (67%), often
caught in the web of addiction and/or mental illness (30%), and have seen
a breakdown of family support. Some can be classified as chronically homeless
(27%), experiencing homelessness three or more times before (24%), but a higher
percentage (35%) is homeless for the very first time.

Among the people surveyed, 14 percent are veterans,
25 percent of which served in Vietnam. Eighty-two percent of all individuals
come to the mission daily and a wide majority of the sample prefers to receive
assistance from an agency with a spiritual emphasis.

Every year, faith-based ministries that are members
of AGRM serve between 40 and 50 million meals, provide 15–20 million nights of
lodging, distribute more than 25 million pieces of clothing, bandage the wounds
of hundreds of abuse victims, and graduate close to 20,000 men and women from
addiction-recovery programs and into productive living.

Founded in 1913, the Colorado Springs-based AGRM is
North America's oldest and largest network of independent crisis shelters and
rehabilitation centers, offering radical hospitality in the name of Jesus. With
approximately 275 member missions, AGRM exists to proclaim the passion of Jesus
toward the hungry, homeless, abused, and addicted; and to accelerate quality
and effectiveness in member missions. For more information, visit www.agrm.org,
or call (800) 4RESCUE.